In connection with the towing of automobiles and other vehicles, it is almost always necessary to employ a chain to attach the vehicle to be towed to the towing vehicle. The use of one or more chains and one or more towing accessories is required even though the tow vehicle may employ but a single winch line. Even in the case of “roll-back” trucks, it is necessary to attach one or more chains to a disabled vehicle in order to pull it onto the roll-back platform. Conventionally, a single winch line from the towing vehicle is attached to a “V” chain assembly which includes an elongated ring to which two separate lengths of chain are permanently attached. A chain-shortening grab hook is attached to the link of each chain which is attached to the elongated ring, and a plurality of towing accessories are attached to the ends of the chains away from the elongated ring. These towing accessories include J-hooks, R-hooks and T-hooks, each of which may be attached to a portion of the frame, or fit within a recess in the frame, of a disabled vehicle. One or more of the J-hooks, R-hooks or T-hooks is attached to the frame of the vehicle and the winch from the towing vehicle is attached to the elongated ring. The chain-shortening grab hooks may then be attached to selected links of the chains to adjust the length of the chain segments between the elongated ring and the disabled vehicle.
One disadvantage of the conventional “V” chain assembly is that it is quite heavy and difficult for a person to handle. In addition, the various towing accessories and the chain-shortening grab hooks are likely to cause the assembly to become tangled when it is stored.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,568,165 describes a towing accessory that includes a main body having a “J” type hook on one end, and a projection on the other end that is disposed at a right angle towards the J-hook. This projection includes a pair of intersecting slots which are oriented essentially perpendicular to the pulling direction of a chain, and which “form a pull-through opening” for the chain. When a chain link is pulled through the intersecting slots, it may be moved along an extension of one of the slots in the projection. A separate securing element is provided to prevent the link in the slot extension from sliding back into the pull-through opening.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,474,676 describes a universal tow bar that is adapted to be attached to a vehicle. One component of one embodiment of this universal tow bar has adjacent J- and T-hooks and a slot that is adapted to receive a link that is attached to a towing strap.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,729,926 describes a claw hook component including a generally flat body having a pair of spaced claws extending from one end. Between the claws is a slot, which is sized to receive a chain link while blocking the movement of adjacent links. In the central part of the flat body is a hole through which a chain may be freely passed. Extending from the side of the hole opposite the claw end of the component is a slot, which has beveled edges. The slot with beveled edges extends in the same direction as the slot between the claws, and is also sized to receive a chain link while blocking the movement of adjacent links.
It would be desirable if a towing accessory could be provided that would offer advantages over these previously known devices.